Author(s): Alice Pung

Young Adult

Gilmore Girls meets Fresh Off the Boat in this witty novel about navigating life in private school while remaining true to yourself. Lucy is a bit of a pushover, but she s ambitious and smart, and she has just received the opportunity of a lifetime: a scholarship to a prestigious school, and a ticket out of her broken-down suburb. Though she s worried she will stick out like badly cut bangs among the razor-straight students, she is soon welcomed into the Cabinet, the supremely popular trio who wield influence over classmates and teachers alike. Linh is blunt, strong-willed, and fearless everything Lucy once loved about herself. She is also Lucy s last solid link to her life before private school, but she is growing tired of being eclipsed by the glamour of the Cabinet. As Lucy floats further away from the world she once knew, her connection to Linh and to her old life threatens to snap. Sharp and honest, Alice Pung s novel examines what it means to grow into the person you want to be without leaving yourself behind. "Part Mean Girls, part Lord of the Flies, and part Special Topics in Calamity Physics, this well-observed and unsentimental novel taps into what is primal within privileged adolescent girls." The Bulletin, Starred review "A bracing, enthralling gut-punch and an essential read for teens, teachers, and parents alike." Kirkus Reviews, Starred review "This daring work with an authentic protagonist teaches important lessons about being yourself while navigating through life." School Library Journal, Starred review "Lucy s struggle to find her place and sense of self will have awide appeal for teen readers and is a welcome addition to the prep-school canon." Booklist, starred review "In a novel filled with strong visual images, Pung draws a sharp contrast between authenticity and deception, integrity and manipulation. Against the vividly painted backdrops of two very different communities, she traces Lucy s struggle to form a new identity without compromising the values she holds closest to her heart."--Publishers Weekly"